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Chest examinations in children with real-time magnetic resonance imaging: first clinical experience
Get PDFAbstract
Background
Real-time magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) based on a fast low-angle shot technique 2.0 (FLASH 2.0) is highly effective against artifacts caused due to the bulk and pulmonary and cardiac motions of the patient. However, to date, there are no reports on the application of this innovative technique to pediatric lung MRI.
Objective
This study aimed to identify the limits of resolution and image quality of real-time lung MRI in children and to assess the types and minimal size of lesions with these new sequences.
Materials and methods
In this retrospective study, pathological lung findings in 87 children were classified into 6 subgroups, as detected on conventional MRI: metastases and tumors, consolidation, scars, hyperinflation, interstitial pathology and bronchiectasis. Subsequently, the findings were grouped according to size (4–6 mm, 7–9 mm and ≥ 10 mm) and evaluated for visual delineation of the findings (0 = not visible, 1 = hardly visible and 2 = well visualized).
Results
Real-time MRI allows for diagnostic, artifact-free thorax images to be obtained, regardless of patient movements. The delineation of findings strongly correlates with the size of the pathology. Metastases, consolidation and scars were visible at 100% when larger than 9 mm. In the 7–9 mm subgroup, the visibility was 83% for metastases, 88% for consolidation and 100% for scars in T2/T1 weighting. Though often visible, smaller pathological lesions of 4–6 mm in size did not regularly meet the expected diagnostic confidence: The visibility of metastases was 18%, consolidation was 64% and scars was 71%. Diffuse interstitial lung changes and hyperinflation, known as “MR-minus pathologies,” were not accessible to real-time MRI.
Conclusion
The method provides motion robust images of the lung and thorax. However, the lower sensitivity for small lung lesions is a major limitation for routine use of this technique. Currently, the method is adequate for diagnosing inflammatory lung diseases, atelectasis, effusions and lung scarring in children with irregular breathing patterns or bulk motion on sedation-free MRI. A medium-term goal is to improve the diagnostic accuracy of small nodules and interstitial lesions
Aktivitätsprofil von Calpain I und II im chronisch infarzierten Rattenmyokard : Einfluss des Calpaininhibitors CAL 9961
Get PDFAls Folge eines akuten Myokardinfarktes kommt es zu einem Anstieg der intrazellulären Ca2+-Konzentration assoziiert mit einer Aktivierung der kardialen Cysteinproteasen Calpain I und II. Diese scheinen in der Pathogenese von Gewebeschäden und Nekrose nach Myokardinfarkt eine wesentliche Rolle zu spielen. Darüber hinaus gibt es Hinweise auf eine Beteiligung von Calpain I bei kardialen Umbauprozessen nach Infarkt. Calpaininhibitoren könnten daher in der Therapie des Myokardinfarkts erfolgreich eingesetzt werden. Unter den Bedingungen einer kardialen Ischämie konnte bei einigen dieser Substanzen eine kardioprotektive Wirkung demonstriert werden. Im Rahmen der vorliegenden Dissertation wurde ein Aktivitätsprofil der beiden Calpainformen im infarzierten und nicht-infarzierten Myokard erstellt und die Auswirkungen des Calpaininhibitors CAL 9961 in vitro und in vivo untersucht. Hierzu wurde an Ratten durch permanente Ligation der linken Koronararterie ein akuter Myokardinfarkt induziert. Ein, 3, 7 und 14 Tage nach Infarkt wurden Calpain I und II aus Gewebehomogenaten von interventrikulärem Septum (IS) und linker, freier Ventrikelwand (LVFW) mittels Chromatographie auf DEAE-Sepharose getrennt. Die Aktivität wurde in scheinoperierten und Infarkt-induzierten Tieren mit chronischer Placebo- oder CAL 9961-Therapie mithilfe eines Enzymassays mit synthetischem Substrat gemessen. Die Therapie wurde 3 Tage vor Infarktinduktion begonnen. Calpain I-Aktivität erreichte 14 Tage nach Infarkt höchste Werte im nicht-infarzierten Myokard (IS), während die maximale Calpain II-Aktivität 3 Tage nach Infarktereignis im infarzierten Herzgewebe (LVFW) gemessen wurde. In Experimenten in vitro hemmte CAL 9961 beide Calpainformen vollständig. In vivo verhinderte eine chronische Therapie mit CAL 9961 bei Tieren mit Myokardinfarkt teilweise den Anstieg der Calpain I-Aktivität im nicht-infarzierten Gewebe (IS) und reduzierte die Calpain II-Aktivität im infarzierten Myokard (LVFW) auf das Level scheinoperierter Tiere. Die in dieser Dissertation erbrachten Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die kardialen Calpaine I und II nach einem akuten Myokardinfarkt aktiviert werden, sich ihre Aktivierung jedoch innerhalb des Myokards zeitlich und regional unterscheidet. Die chronische Inhibition dieser Enzyme könnte die Calpain-vermittelten Gewebeschäden limitieren und zur Erhaltung der strukturellen Integrität des Myokards nach Infarkt beitragen.The calpains have been proposed to be activated following cardiac ischemia and to contribute to myocyte damage after myocardial infarction (MI). In this study, the activity of calpains I and II in the infarcted and non-infarcted rat myocardium and the action of the selective calpain inhibitor, CAL 9961, has been investigated. MI was induced by permanent ligation of the left coronary artery. One, 3, 7 and 14 days post MI, the enzymes calpain I and II were separated from homogenates of the interventricular septum (IS) and left ventricular free wall (LVFW) by chromatography on DEAE-Sepharose. The activity of the calpains was measured in sham-operated and MI animals chronically treated with placebo or CAL 9961 (15mg kg‾1 d‾1 s.c.) in a synthetic substrate assay. Treatment was started 3 days before MI induction. Calpain I activity reached highest values in IS 14 days post MI, whereas maximum activity of calpain II was measured in LVFW 3 days post MI. In experiments in vitro, CAL 9961 completely inhibited both calpains. In vivo, chronic treatment of MI animals with CAL 9961 partially prevented the increase in calpain I activity in IS and reduced calpain II activity in LVFW to sham levels. Our findings demonstrate that calpains I and II are activated after MI, however, both enzymes differ in their regional and temporal activation within the infarcted myocardium. Chronic inhibition of these enzymes with CAL 9961 might limit the calpain-induced myocardial damage and preserve cardiac structural integrity post MI
Real‐Time MRI of the Chest Wall, Diaphragm, and Lungs in Children
Get PDFObjective:To evaluate the clinical applicability and diagnostic potential of real-time magnetic resonance imaging (rtMRI) as a sedation-free, radiation-free imaging modality for assessing the chest wall, diaphragm, and lungs in children.Methods:This video-based narrative review summarizes over four years of clinical experience with rtMRI in pediatric thoracic imaging. Real-time MRI achieves very high frame rates (up to 50 images per second), effectively minimizing motion artifacts. Representative clinical scenarios—including pneumonia, chest wall tumors, diaphragmatic dysfunction, airway anomalies, and congenital lung malformations—are presented to illustrate the diagnostic capabilities and limitations of rtMRI.Results:Real-time MRI enables reliable imaging of thoracic structures in awake and uncooperative children, minimizing motion artifacts and thus eliminating the need for sedation. It provides diagnostic information on conditions such as pneumonia, abscesses, effusions, and neoplastic lesions, using two basic MR contrasts. Diaphragmatic motion and large airway morphology are clearly visualized. Limitations include reduced sensitivity for detecting interstitial lung disease and small pulmonary metastases. Complete thoracic examinations can be performed within 4 minutes, supporting rapid triage and potentially obviating the need for CT or sedated MRI in selected cases.Conclusion:Real-time MRI is a promising, child-friendly alternative for thoracic imaging in pediatrics, particularly for evaluating chest wall abnormalities, diaphragmatic disorders, and pneumonia-related complications. Broader adoption and vendor-independent implementation may help establish rtMRI as a routine modality in pediatric chest imaging.<br
Real-time MRI: a new tool of radiologic imaging in small children
Get PDFReal-time MRI (rt-MRI) in children is a new imaging technique that combines the advantages of US — at frame rates of up to 50 images per second — with the quality and features of MRI. Although still subject of research, it has become a standard tool in the diagnostic portfolio of two pediatric radiology departments in Germany. Based on ultrashort acquisition times, any detrimental effects of macroscopic movements of the child and the physiological movements of the organs are negligible. Especially in pediatric brain imaging, rt-MRI has already proven its value. With suitable indications, rt-MRI can reduce anesthesia and sedation examinations in children below 6 years of age by 40% due to its very short examination time and its robustness to motion. There is a high level of acceptance among parents and referrers when diagnostic possibilities and limitations are communicated correctly.Conclusion: Completely new diagnostic possibilities arise in the imaging of the moving lung, the beating heart, joint movements, and speaking and swallowing, as demonstrated in this video-backed review
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Get PDFWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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